Max Vinetz - "sear"

 Max Vinetz - sear

sear calls to mind the unpleasant heat of cooking over a hot stove in the summer, but once you start, you already know it's too late to stop.

Max Vinetz, a composer and current doctoral fellow at Princeton, knows how to create scores well-suited to the now standard model of a contemporary classical ensemble. sear, written for and recently premiered by Alarm Will Sound, is filled with close, Penderecki-esque string whines and shockingly loud blips from the brass and bass drum. Ending with an incessant, out-of-tune drone, Vinetz successfully finds a way to capture his audience, while also making them uncomfortable.

Vinetz's music falls prey to similar shortcomings of large ensemble works of the genre. While slightly intriguing upon first listen, sear becomes familiar and cliché well before the halfway mark. Vinetz's writing is effective, but also incredibly basic in terms of new music. Alarm Will Sound performs dozens of these student works a year, most of which are indistinguishable. sear calls to mind the unpleasant heat of cooking over a hot stove in the summer, but once you start, you already know it's too late to stop.

Listen and watch the performance by Alarm Will Sound at Princeton Sound Kitchen on 21 March 2023 hereBe sure to like, follow us, and comment your own thoughts!

© 2023 Brutal New Music Reviews
originally written and published 26 May 2023

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